The Moon's Grace
by Wolfie714
Summary: Femslash fic between Hermione and Luna; most likely takes place during Hermione's 5th year at Hogwarts. Insipiration for flower scene from here: acutecat . deviantart . com / art / HP - Hermione - and - Luna - 80049692 minus the gaps
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Hermione ran through the corridor, ignoring all passersby who were looking at her strangely, her vision blurry from teary eyes. She skidded round a corner and carried on until she was in a more deserted part of the castle and burst into the girl's bathroom. She sobbed and coughed, crashing to the floor by a sink and covered her face with her hands, her bag falling to the floor with a thud. Her body shook as she cried, large salty droplets landing on her skirt and leaving dark stains. Her whimpers echoed in the otherwise empty bathroom. Suddenly the door opened and soft footsteps made their way across the room, stopping just in front of her. She shivered and daren't look up.

A familiar voice broke through her strangled sobs "Whatever's the matter, Hermione?" The quiet and serene voice of Luna Lovegood made Hermione stir and look up. Luna was kneeling in front of her, pulling her gently into a hug. Hermione's eyes widen slightly at the younger girl's actions. She had never seen Luna hug anyone before, the blonde girl usually being distant from others. Perhaps it was because no one else gave her the chance to get close, always teasing and mocking her, or hiding her things. Whilst Hermione did none of these things she had still been abrupt with the girl on more than one occasion, when the two disagreed about the existance of Crumple Horned Snorkacks and Hermione's opinions on The Quibbler. So she was rather surprised when Luna held her close. Surprised, but comforted.

"Well?" Hermione jumped a little as the younger girl tugged her from her thoughts back into reality. She was surprised to see Luna was no longer hugging her, but was still very close as she was leaning her forehead against Hermione's. This caused a blush to creep up her neck and along her cheeks whist a strange and unknown feeling appeared in her gut with a jolt. "I... uh.. well you see... it was Ron..we had an argument. Again." Hermione mumbled and glued her eyes to the floor. Luna was so close she could smell her sweet perfume; it smelt wonderful.. Hermione swallowed the lump in her throat.

"Aah well that makes sense. I hear you two have been arguing a lot" Luna replied quietly, gently cupping the older girl's face in her hand. Hermione looked up again in surprise, both at Luna's actions and her words, her face turning a deeper shade of crimson.

"H-How did you know that?" Hermione stuttered, her eyes still streaming with tears. Luna sighed and gently wiped the older girl's tears away with her thumb, which caused a jolt in Hermione's lower abdomen.

"Ginny told me, she sees you arguing a lot in the common room you know" Hermione looked into Luna's eyes and was again caught off guard by the younger girl. There was something different about Luna's usually calm and far-away eyes. Was she worried?

"Well yeah... we have. I like him so much but he just frustrates me and has even begun making fun of me! Ugh of all the people I had to fall for why did it have to be that moron?" Hermione growled and again buried her head in her hands. Luna cupped both of Hermione's cheeks in her hands and wiped her tears away, yet again.

"Shh it's ok, it's not your fault. You can't choose who you fall for.." Luna scooted closer still to the older girl, whilst Hermione looked up and smiled weakly.

"I guess..." Luna then pulled the brunette in for another hug and squeezed her tightly, which made the older girl purr quietly. When she realised what she was doing she squeaked and pulled back with an alarmed expression on her face.

"I didn't..I... I mean..." She blurted, not knowing what to say. Luna just chuckled and kissed her cheek. Hermione boggled at this, her face turning crimson again. She carefully touched her finger tips to her cheek where Luna's lips had been moments before. A playful smile appeared on the younger girl's face and she raised her eyebrow slightly

"You liked that didn't you?" Hermione could only nod. Why did she like it? And just what was it about this blonde girl that was making her heart pound in her chest and a jolt appear in her lower belly? Before she could wonder any more, Luna leant in and gently brushed her lips against the brunette's. Hermione held her breath for a second and then started to kiss back. She closed her eyes and pulled the blonde closer, wrapping her arms around Luna's neck. Luna put one hand on Hermione's lower back and one in her bushy brown hair; she eagerly deepened the kiss, licking Hermione's lower lip, which caused the older girl to whimper again, but this time for a very different reason. The younger girl couldn't help but chuckle into the kiss.

The young blonde leaned back, gently breaking the kiss and tucked a strand of hair behind the brunette's ear with a dreamy smile, her eyes sparkling with happiness.

"Feeling any better?"

"Much" Hermione nodded with a grin, this time it was her turn to pull Luna into a hug. She kissed the younger girl's neck then sat back and purred quietly. Luna stood and offered her hand; Hermione willingly took it and stood up as well. She grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder, then they walked out of the bathroom hand in hand, a smile playing on both their lips. The blonde led the brunette along the corridor and down the vast stairwell. She began skipping and Hermione couldn't help but laugh and join in. Soon they reached the large oak doors that led outside and wandered into the grounds of Hogwarts, a gentle breeze playing with their hair.

After wandering for a while the two settled down by a large beech tree near the lake, Luna sitting by the trunk and tugging Hermione down to sit in front of her and wrapping her arms around the brunette's waist. Hermione dumped her bag on the floor to the side then leaned into Luna's embrace and closed her eyes. This time it was Luna's turn to purr as she breathed in the scent of Hermione's perfume, whilst gently kissing her lover's neck. They stayed like that for a while, talking occaisonaly and just enjoying each other's company.

Hermione shivered and opened her eyes, realising she had fallen asleep in Luna's arms. The sun was low in the sky and it glowed an orangey pink. Hermione sat up and stretched with a yawn. She then turned to look at the girl who had opened up her world so much in so little time. She hadn't even considered liking or being with a girl in that way before.

Luna smiled sleepily, leaning in to kiss Hermione; it looked as if she had fallen asleep too.

"If you're cold, we can go inside you know" Hermione couldn't help but smile at Luna's beautifully calm voice, serene as ever.

"Mm we could but I want to stay outside a bit longer. Let's go for a walk shall we?" The older girl stood up and stretched again, helping Luna to her feet, then scooped up her bag. They wandered around the lakeside and something caught Luna's eye

"Oooh aren't those daisies pretty?" She skipped over and squatted down to smell the flowers in question. Hermione chuckled and followed the younger girl over, bending down to also breathe in their sweet scent.

"They are pretty aren't they?" She mused, gently stroking the top of Luna's head. The blonde beamed up at the brunette then proceeded to pick some of them, making sure to leave a few

"Need to make sure there are still some for the Crumple Horned Snorkacks; they feed on flowers, you know. Daisies are their favourite."

"Do they now? Well they have good taste" Hermione chuckled, with a raised brow.

"They do, don't they?" Another wonderful smile radiated from the younger girl's lips as she stood up and gently intertwined her fingers in between those of Hermione's, her other hand holding a bunch of the flowers she'd just picked. Hermione stood up and they continued to wander around for a while, before Hermione shivered again. Luna smiled with a sympathetic look in her eyes and led the older girl back to the castle. Neither of them quite felt like parting with one another or joining anyone else so they wandered around until they found an abandoned class room.

They wandered over to a desk and Hermione sat on it, pulling her lover close. She gently kissed Luna on the lips, whilst the young blonde moved herself closer and responded in kind. She wrapped her arms around Hermione's waist and hummed happily into the kiss, causing the older girl to chuckle. They broke the kiss and leaned their foreheads together as Luna had done earlier. Hermione smiled and nuzzled against Luna's neck, kissing it gently then adding a quick nip. Luna giggled and kissed Hermione's nose.

They cuddled for a while longer then Luna picked up one of the daisies she had picked earlier and handed it to Hermione with a sweet smile. Hermione blushed a little which caused her lover to giggle and kiss her cheek. Hermione slipped carefully from the desk and wrapped her arms around Luna's waist and pulled the younger girl close into a loving embrace. Luna purred, then after they had finished hugging she tucked another of the daisies behind Hermione's right ear. She then skipped over to the desk as Hermione chuckled and sat on one of the chairs to watch, whilst Luna scooped up the flowers and began placing some of them in her hair. Hermione couldn't help but admire the younger girl's beautiful golden locks, how they seemed to glow in the sunset and how they framed her beautiful face. But of course now Luna had her back to Hermione she couldn't see Luna's face; instead she followed the beautiful blonde hair down Luna's back with her eyes, chuckling quietly at the trail of daisies adorning the younger girl's long hair that went all the way down her back, not quite hiding the curves of her body...

Hermione blushed as she found herself staring at Luna's physique and quickly grabbed a book out of her bag. Feeling flustered, she turned her back to Luna who was now humming quietly again and started to read. For a while she couldn't get the mental image out of her head, but after a time she began to actually start reading the book instead of just staring at the words. Starting to calm down she let a quiet sigh escape her lips. She hadn't noticed her lover approach her from behind and jumped when Luna placed her hands on Hermione's shoulders.

"Something the matter, Mione?" Luna's dreamy voice whispered in her ear. A shiver of pleasure went down Hermione's spine and she swallowed

"N-No, just got a bit engrossed in my book and didn't realise you were right behind me is all." She turned and grinned up at Luna who giggled and leaned in and gave her a peck on the cheek, causing her to turn slightly red. Luna purred quietly and rested her head on Hermione's shoulder for a little after Hermione had turned and started to read again in an effort to hide her blush. Luna then started humming and picked up some more of the flowers and started placing them in Hermione's hair, which caused the brunette to blush some more as her hair was gently played with. Luna continued humming as a blush appeared on her own face as she breathed in the beautiful scent of Hermione's coconut shampoo, loving just how close she was to the person she had admired from a distance for so long.

Hermione purred as her hair was played with, deciding that despite her earlier argument, today had been a wonderful day.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Hermione mumbles in her sleep and then rolls over. A strand of sunlight pierces through a gap in the curtains around her bed and shines on her face, waking her up. Annoyed she screws her eyes up and pulls the duvet over her face, hoping to rest for a few more minutes. As she tries to rest light blond hair and piercing blue eyes appear in her mind's eye. Luna. Hermione sits up with a jolt, her heart suddenly pounding. Was it all a dream? It can't have been, can it? Please let it have been real... Gnawing on her lip she takes a deep breath and closes her eyes again in order to try and think clearly. She rubs her temple with her index and forefinger from both hands. Think, just think. With a sigh she runs a hand through her hair, only to feel something strange. With a furrowed brow she opens her eyes and plucks it from her hair. A small and delicate looking petal rests in between her forefinger and thumb. For a moment she stares at it, wondering why on earth it was there. Suddenly realisation hits her and her eyes widen. One of the daisies Luna had been playing with and entwined in her hair! So it was real after all. After the initial shock, a large grin appears on her features and with a happy sigh she flops backwards so she's lying on her back. She closely examines the small white petal for a minute then brings it to her lips and closes her eyes.

"What are you doing?" Hermione squeaks in shock and sits up with a jerk, to see Ginny looking at her with a raised eyebrow. When did she come over and pull back the curtains around Hermione's bed? Hermione certainly hadn't heard any movement. Flabbergasted the older girl just sat and oggled for a minute, whilst Ginny just stared at her, a bewildered and slightly amused look on her face.

"Well?" The red head was now resting one hand on her hip, still waiting for an answer it seemed.

"I...uh... Nothing?" Oh dear god, since when was her voice that high-pitched? She didn't even know it could GO that high-pitched! She fumbled and looked at Ginny, entirely speechless. The devious smirk adorning the red-head's lips wasn't helping. In the slightest.

"My, my, it seems Hermione Granger is speechless! Never thought I'd see that occur. So come on, spill. You were obviously doing something you didn't want anyone to know about if you're that shocked. And I'm not going anywhere until you tell me." Ugh why did she have to be so damned stubborn?! Perhaps it was the red hair, Ron was pretty stubborn too. So was Harry for that matter, but his mum was a red-head so he probably inherited some red-head stubborn gene or something.

"None of your business, Ginevra. What are you doing in here anyway? This isn't your dorm."

"Oooh hit a nerve have I? I came to see you to ask where you were yesterday, because I couldn't find you. I had gone to find you after I heard that my dunder-headed brother had been a jerk, again, but when asking where you'd gone he was as useful as Malfoy tending to a Hippogriff. I assumed you went to the library but you weren't there, which is where you usually go to get some peace and quiet from the boys. So where'd you wander off to? Because you weren't in any of the bathrooms or up here." Hermione heaved a sigh and shook her head. That argument with Ron had been particularly bad, he could be so frustrating sometimes. She'd wanted to get away from the others and have a bit of peace and quiet. Then of course she'd come across Luna. She smirked a little at that, to which Ginny raised her eyebrow. Hermione cleared her throat, blushing slightly before responding.

"No, I was just half-asleep and remembering something is all. What is this, the Spanish Inquisition?" She exclaimed in annoyance, raising an eyebrow of her own. At Ginny's blank look she sighed and rolled her eyes. "It's a muggle saying relating back to an historical event that basically is a way of showing exasperation when being asked numerous questions. Anyway are you really that surprised that I wasn't in the library? I just went somewhere to study quietly on my own. The library can get a bit busy and I like to have space sometimes, that's all. I just wanted to be by myself for a bit." At the comment regarding Malfoy she flashed a grin, remembering when she'd punched that spoilt brat over his repulsive behaviour right before Buckbeak's supposed execution. Good memories...

"What are you smirking at? The same thing you were grinning about goofily before?" Ginny boops Hermione on the nose, a cheeky grin on her face as she asks this. Hermione blushes a little, scowling as she does so.

"No! I was thinking about when I punched Malfoy third year, your Hippogriff comment reminded me of it. And I was NOT grinning goofily!" Upon saying this she huffed and got out of bed, grabbing her clothes and started getting changed. Ginny just snickered and smirked at the older girl.

"Yeah, that did sound funny. Wish I'd been there to see it, I bet his face was priceless! Specially as he ran away with his tail between his legs. Oh please, you were SO grinning goofily just now! So come on, who's the lucky guy?" Ginny nudged Hermione, pushing the brunette slightly off balance as she was pulling her jeans on, earning the younger girl a slight growl and a frown. At Ginny's words, however Hermione's face turned a deep crimson and she looked up, jeans still undone, gawping at the younger girl.

"Wh-what are you talking about? There's no guy! What makes you think there is?" She huffed before realising she'd not finished getting dressed and went about doing so, attempting to hide her furious blush with her hair in the process. After dressing she moved on to attempting to tame her hair with a brush, but quite frankly it was a losing battle. Plus Ginny was looming behind her now.

"Oh please, there SO is! For one, the daft grin, for another the reaction you had just now. You're blushing like crazy and jumped when I suggested it. There's totally a guy you're interested in other than my prat of a brother! So come on, who is he? What House is he in? Is he the same year?" She grabbed Hermione's brush, causing the older girl to spin around and leer at her, trying to retrieve the brush but failing as Ginny had darted out of her reach.

"Hey give that back! No, there isn't. So stop it! Ugh AGAIN with the Spanish Inquisition! What is it with you today and interrogating me?" Hermione snapped, still attempting in vain to win back her hairbrush from her persistent friend. Ginny, however was much faster than her due to better reflexes honed during quidditch practice and so had darted away, laughing and waving the brush mockingly at her friend.

"Why? Because it's so much fun of course! You get so wound up and it's so EASY to rile you up! That and I'm merely expressing an interest, as your best female friend, in your love life. Is that so wrong?" At this she looked at Hermione with an attempted puppy dog eyed look and a rather child-like pout. Hermione simply huffed in response, stomping towards her and grabbing for the brush.

"Well I've just woken up and had god knows how many questions barrelled at me followed by having my hair brush stolen. So excuse me if I seem a bit tetchy! And yes, of course, it's totally NOT because you're nosy that you want to know about what happened." She growled as she dove for the brush but missed, with Ginny having sidestepped out of the way with a snicker.

"Yes, you never did like mornings or waking up… Aha! So you DO admit that something happened! Go on, spill, missy! I won't let up until you do and you know that full well." She grinned mischievously, a decidedly smug look on her features at having gotten Hermione to admit to something. Hermione paused and turned scarlet, stuttering and trying to backpedal.

"Wh-what? No, no I didn't mean it like that, I just meant tha-

"Ah ah aaah, you already admitted it Mione, no point in denying it now! So come on, who's the lucky fella?" As she interrupted her bushy haired friend, Ginny skipped over to said friend's bed and plopped herself down on it, looking expectantly at the older girl with a grin. Hermione sighed, her shoulders drooping in exasperation. She ran her hand through her hair then padded over to the bed and sat down next to Ginny, looking at the younger girl with a weary and annoyed glare, grumbling as she did so.

"Stupid, stubborn red, headed hair brush thief…" Ginny just raised her eyebrows at this and smirked, awaiting an answer with that insufferable look on her face. Hermione grumbled and flopped back on the bed so she was lying down.

"Fine! Fine! I do like someone, there, you happy now?" Scowling up at the ceiling, she crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance, noticing in her peripheral vision that Ginny was lying down now too, on her side to look at the older girl. The red head was still grinning and leant forward, tickling Hermione's belly a little which cause the brunette to squirm and yelp.

"Heeey no no, stop! Stop, please! No tickling!" Hermione squealed and she writhed at the tickling and attempted to move away from the other girl's ministrations.

"Alright, fine. I'll tell you who it is, just stop tickling me! It's… erm, well, it's… … Hey no! Stop, ok ok I'll say just stop tickling! It's …. Luna." She relented at the threat of being tickled again, as Ginny had moved closer when she'd paused. However she mumbled the name very quietly, too embarrassed to say it any louder. For one thing she was a very private person and didn't tend to like sharing some of the more personal aspects of her life, sometimes even with the closest of her friends. But also because she had no idea how her friend would react to her liking someone of the same gender. Come to think of it, she had no idea what the general view on homosexuality in the wizarding world was. Was it similar to that of the muggle world, slowly improving from the bigotry and prejudice but still had a way to go? Or was it worse, considering the views a lot of people had on blood status and how important family ties were? She gnawed her lip nervously; she knew Ginny was fairly open minded and that her family were openly advocates of muggle co-operation when a lot of other wizarding families were strictly against it. But would their views be so open regarding this topic?

Ginny meanwhile furrowed her brow at Hermione's squeak of a reply, unable to discern a name from the mumbles. She tilted her head to the side with a smile, watching the expressions flit across Hermione's face, wondering what was going through her friend's hectic mind.

"Wow you really are embarrassed aren't you? Come on, I won't judge, even if they're not my type or whatever. So come on, I mean you can't have expected me to actually hear that!" She grinned and nudged her friend in encouragement.

Hermione drew a deep breath and closed her eyes, willing forth her courage. Ginny had just said she wouldn't judge, so hopefully she would be ok with it. The blush on Hermione's cheeks grew as she tried to find her voice again.

"I.. I um.. well I wasn't sure how you'd react.. Um.. Well… It's Luna." She swallowed nervously and held her breath, opening her eyes to look up at those of her friend above her. Ginny blinked owlishly, trying to discern whether he friend was teasing her. Judging from the nervous look on Hermione's face, this was no joke. She sat up a little and looked down at Hermione in thought. The older girl swallowed again with nerves at the lack of the response. Was this the calm before the storm? Would Ginny suddenly start shouting at her about how repulsive her same-sex attraction was? But no yells came. Ginny remained quiet for a little while longer, looking thoughtful. And then…

"Is she a good kisser?"

Hermione blinked. What? Had she heard right? Did Ginny just ask her whether Luna was a good kisser rather than why on earth she liked a girl? Hermione sat up and opened her mouth but found she couldn't say anything and so closed it again. But a moment later she opened it again, a frown on her face, but still no words would come forth so she shut it again. Ginny looked rather amused at this.

"Well are you going to tell me or are you going to carry on impersonating a gold fish?" She teased with a cheeky grin, nudging her friend who still looked utterly gobsmacked.

"Yes! I um, well I mean yes I am going to tell you and err yes she is. But, but I, I thought.."

"What? That I'd go bananas and start going all 'eew Hermione likes _girls_!' I mean really come on Mione, this is me! Since when have I ever treated people differently for things they can't help? I don't care that you're muggle born so why should I care that you like girls?"

Hermione opened her mouth and raised a finger as if to make a point then couldn't think of one. Instead she blushed profusely and grinned sheepishly. Ginny simply shook her head and chuckled, pulling her friend into a hug which was gladly reciprocated.

"Thanks, Gin. I was just, nervous, you know? I meant I haven't even heard of any gay witches or wizards before so I had no idea how you or anyone would react…"

"Well that's fair enough, I mean most people are indifferent to it, but some of the nutty old families that are obsessed with blood purity have the same view of gays as muggles and muggle borns but most people are fine. However from what I've heard there's variation in the muggle world for reactions so I can understand why you'd be scared shitless. But there's nothing to worry about; the people who won't accept you for who you are wouldn't anyway because they have their heads up their arses preaching about blood purity all the time. So all your friends will be fine with it. Weeeelll… Except Ron. He'll probably throw a hissy fit 'cause he likes you and all. Though judging from the argument you two had yesterday he probably won't be talking to you for a while anyway, he's stubborn like that." She grinned and pulled Hermione in for another hug, whilst the other girl just laughed with relief and also at the idea of Malfoy with his head up his arse. She sighed and leant back, looking thoughtful.

"I figured Harry would be fine but that does take a weight off my shoulders. I'll deal with Ron some other time, like you said he probably won't talk to me right now anyway. Not that I really want to talk to that berk at the moment. But if you don't mind, I'd rather tell the others about this when I'm ready so could you not tell anyone in the meantime?" Hermione shuffled forwards on the bed, putting her shoes on as she spoke.

"Yeah sure that's fair enough, I know I wouldn't wanna be outed if I wasn't ready! Anyway, tell me more about Luna and stuff!" She bounced up and down with glee, looking thoroughly excited, like a child on Christmas morning.

Hermione shook her head and laughed at her friend's antics.

"And stuff? How very eloquent of you Ginevra! Anyway, there's not much to tell really. She found me after the argument yesterday and helped calm me down. She hugged me then we kissed and we ended up spending the rest of the day together. It's funny, I'd never even considered being with another girl before, but it just felt right, you know? Just hugging her made me feel so much better and I really liked kissing her…" She stared off into space with a smile on her face, only to be disrupted from her thoughts by Ginny bouncing up and down on the bend even more fervently and squealing.

"Aaw that's so cute! You're beyond smitten Mione! So I take it you two are seeing each other now?" She grinned and leant forward, wiggling her eyebrows at this. Hermione burst out laughing and nodded.

"Yes, we're together and I'm not smitten!" At the look Ginny directed at her, she sighed and blushed again "Alright fine! So I'm smitten, sue me!" Ginny had that annoying look of smugness on her face again, which caused Hermione to roll her eyes. She'd finished lacing up her shoes by this point. Standing up she looked to Ginny and beckoned towards the door.

"Come on, let's go get some breakfast you crazy thing." Ginny giggled and sprung from the bed, wrapping her arm around Hermione's and dragging her friend to the door.

"Yes, let's! I want to meet your new girlfriend!" This was met with a groan as Hermione was led along down the stairs. Well today looked to be… interesting.


End file.
